I LOVE...

...these three sweet girlies!

You Can Have Me

No Greater Fear

Up until last night I had never had to dial 9-1-1. Up until last night I had never been inside an ambulance. Up until last night I had never been wheeled into the ER on a gurney- with a child in my arms! And I hope and pray that I will never have to do it ever, ever, ever again.

We were supposed to be watching Sophie and Ben for the evening while their mom and dad went out for a date. I was tired and low on groceries, so we decided to walk a couple of blocks to the nearest McDonald's for a bite to eat. I was a few steps ahead on the sidewalk with the bigger kids and Valerie was skipping next to Marc. She tripped. Her knee got a little scrape and her mouth and forehead hit the sidewalk. No big deal, she's done that a million times. (What kid hasn't?!) Marc called me back to comfort her. She was trying to cry but didn't take a breath. I remember both Marc and I saying, "Just breathe, Valerie. Just breathe." She's done this breath holding thing before too. But this time it was different. She actually fainted. The next few minutes are a big blur. Valerie didn't just faint and then wake up. Her eyes were open, but she was not responsive. I called the paramedics and they were there within minutes. I'll spare you all the details - but you can imagine what the four other children might have been feeling as they watched the scene unfold. Thankfully, God provided a neighbor and friend from church who just happened to be home on a Friday evening to escort all of them over to her driveway. I got in the ambulance with Valerie and away we went. By the time we got into the ambulance she was beginning to act normally and even answered a few questions for the EMT. Marc met me in the ER after getting the other children settled with my Dad. The nurses checked her vitals and then the doctor ordered a CT scan just to make sure that there wasn't any injury to her brain. During this time Valerie was sleepy, but was acting like herself. She eventually got hungry and told me, "I want go away 'dis place." The staff observed her for a couple of hours and when everything came back clear we were allowed to leave. Just like that. All from one little trip on the sidewalk. But I'll tell you, those were some of the most frightening minutes of my life.

We are so thankful that it wasn't more serious. She has only minor scratches to show for all that drama. Last night she slept soundly next to me. I was supposed to wake her up a couple of times in the night - which I did - but she was so tired! I am to take her to the pediatrician on Monday for a follow up. I'm guessing that there won't be much to say. Will you pray with us that the next time she gets hurt she will cry properly and not hold her breath? At this point, that is really our only concern.

And now for some much needed rest....

No Greater Joy

Thanks to my good friend, Julie, I have pictures to post of a very special event in Sierra's life that happened yesterday evening at church - her baptism! Almost three years ago she asked Jesus to come "clean her heart" and be her savior. She has always had a very sensitive heart and a good grasp of spiritual things. For over a year she has wanted to be baptized. Marc and I made her wait a while so that we could be sure that she understood exactly what she was doing and why. Her testimony last night was very clear and beautiful. (She did get a little nervous when she saw the big audience - but her words were clear.) It was a great joy to watch her from behind the scenes. Having "Pastor Grandpa" perform the baptism was the icing on the cake. When we got home last night Marc gave her a new Bible to read. She has been pouring over it today, finding many of her favorite verses and reading them to me.

"The Lord himself goes before you and will be with you. He will never leave you nor forsake you. Do not be afraid. Do not be discouraged." Deuteronomy 31:8

Sierra share this verse as a part of her testimony. I hope that she will never forget those words of truth and hope! If she can boldly proclaim her faith at the age of 7, I pray that she will be even more courageous at 17, 27, 37, etc. God bless you, sweet girl. We love you very, very much.

Tennis

We are by no means a family gifted with tennis prowess. We do, however, enjoy going over to the local courts to hit the balls around. Most of our time is spent gathering balls from every corner of the complex...which is good exercise in and of itself. Last Saturday we met some friends for some fun on the courts.

Sierra is really developing a pretty good swing ... and she has a nice grunt to go with it! :)

Ally can't grunt because she always has her tongue sticking out of her mouth.

See what I mean?

And then there's Miss Val-Val who can barely lift the racket, but wants equal playing time.

She's dangerous!

I wanna take you to...

Rio! Rio!

My kids (and their friends!) are really into the recent animated kids movie about a couple of blue macaws set in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. So much so that we not only bought the DVD, but also the soundtrack! I love it because several of the songs are in Portuguese and they have a fun Brazilian beat. So - the other day when the kids were having a play date they were dancing around the living room acting like birds and then got the notion of making bird costumes for themselves. I pulled out the blue construction paper, scissors and glue. They worked SO HARD and I think that the outcome was pretty cool. They had everything from beaks to wings and tail feathers.

"B" says b...b...

...balloons!

What would compel two tired mamas to wake their five slumbering wee ones, skip breakfast and all regular morning routines, buckle them into their car seats and drive to downtown Boise at dawn?! The Spirit of Boise Balloon Classic, that's what!

Susie and I were on the highway by 7 o'clock on Friday morning and arrived at Ann Morrison Park just in time to watch about 30 balloons be inflated and then lift off of the ground right in front of us. The sights and sounds were unforgettable! I mean, how many kindergartners get to watch a hot air balloon launch as part of their study of the letter "Bb"? So fun!

They flew right over our heads!

These were some of our favorites...the Coke balloon and The Happiest Balloon on Earth!